Thread: L26 swap in 96 SE would it be realistic

Not really worth it for all the trouble you would have to go through to get it to work.
The easiest way would be to get the entire harness and the pcm.

If you have to ask, you probably aren't capable of doing it.

Thats a pretty good deal on a low mileage motor. It will take a bit of work to get it done but i say go for it man. As long as you don't plan on modding much unless of course you wanna turbo eventually.

I have done the swap before I had the 3.4 DOHC in my 96 Z34. swapped to the L36 and just finished a topswap on it. for the easiest solution you would need:
-Harness & PCM from a 98/99 Z34, LTZ, or police lumina with 3.8L engine. this is basically a direct swap from reading the pin outs i mod'd two wires but i have heard people just drop it in and have never had issues.
-power steering high psi line
-I would suggest a l36 and 4t65e as it is a direct swap but you prob could run a l26 with a l36 file if you swap to a cable throttle body...
-axles for the trans. if a 65e you want the same axles from the 98/99 Z,ltz,police or if you go with an HD you will need to build a hybrid of the inner HD axle and the outer from the Z/ltz/poilce for the pass side, and i think the driver side will need to be the same from the Z/ltz/police.
-lower engine mounts from the new engine will be needed you can reuse the trans mount.
-the down pipe from the z/ltz/police or possibly a custom down pipe as the firewall is closer on the 96 vs the later gen's. If you choose to go headers, you will need to both cut and hammer the fire wall to make room. also relocation of the O2 senor will be needed. the clearance locations are different between Speed daddy headers vs true pacesetter headers... so if you go this route let me know and i can help with this.
-Fuel lines will also need to be changed. either splice them in, swap with AN lines, or swap the entire lines from the z/ltz/police. If you go with the 08 you will need a new pump and possibly tank and a new single fuel line from tank to fuel rail.

-throttle cables should work if you have the 3100 the 3.4DOHC was not compatible with the l36.
-the 4t65 has an adjustable shift cable but the stock 4t60 will work.
-my DOHC AC line mounted up to the L36 with out much effort.

I have heard 03+ trans you will need matching year Pcm's for it to work correctly. So i suggest finding an older trans. I know you say it is cheaper to get the 08 with less miles, but it will make the swap a lot more difficult and prevent you from tuning. I would contact Morad parts as this is who i got my swap parts from.

I lucked out and got and engine and trans from a 98 Z34. I got the fuel lines and upper mounts from the local junk yard, I planed to do headers from the start so cutting the fire wall was done with the engine out. I spliced the fuel lines near the ABS module at the hard lines. if you have questions further let me know i took plenty of pictures and have the c100 diagrams for the harness.

-Your upper mounts will work, your trans mount will work, I do not think the passenger side engine mount on the L26 will not work.
-the L26 has an aluminum oil pan too IIRC. this will not fit in the 96 engine cradle and the 97-08 GP cradles will not fit in your 96. So the Oil pan will need to be changed to one from an L36. or you will need to cut, weld, and reinforce your cradle.
-the 08 has a returnless fuel system. your pump is not compatible with that system, nor are the fuel lines. It might be possible to run a L36 fuel rail but im not sure if the 08 PCM will properly control the older style pump. even if you get that pcm to control your current pump, the fuel line for your 3100 connect in different locations at the fuel rail then a L36 or L26 so these will need to be changed as well.
-The down pipe from the 08 will not fit. the engine bay in your car is smaller then in the later GP's. I do not believe ZZP even sells a DP that will fit a 3800 in your year car. Milzymotorsports may have one but it will be pricey.
-the axles you need are from a 98-99 Z34, LTZ, Police Lumina. these are the correct length for your car.

Now on to the electronic issues...
If you try and run an 08 PCM and harness and mate up to your 96 car here are a few issues you will have:
-the C100 connectors at the fire wall are different shapes.
-the 08 PCM will be looking for the BCM that will not be there.
-your instrument cluster is not compatible with the signals the pcm is sending. so you will need to swap clusters.
-the drive by wire gas pedal most likely will not mount to your pedal box on the fire wall.
-if you need any tuning or adjustments to the PCM to make things work, you will not be able to tune the 08 pcm.

Im sure there are plenty of issues i have not even mentioned. This is why I suggest swapping to a 97-02 drive train. you might be able to use the L26 and convert all the sensors to the ones from a L36. you would still need a 97-02 4t65e trans and 3.29 gears. Then you can run a 98/99 harness from the Z/ltz/police lumina that is plug and play, it will work with your instrument cluster and just connect right to your fire wall c100 connector. with 98/99 axles for the trans it is pretty much bolt up and go. if you find a down pipe from the 98/99 Z/asdfa that will be direct swap as well.

The bottom line is anything is possible. yes Im sure it is possible to get the 08 drive train to work in your 96. yes the parts are cheaper, but the time and fabrication and unknown issues that will pop up will more then end up costing more then just getting a l36 and 4t65e.

A lot of the info for the swap was out there... but over the years many of these forums have been shut down and the info was lost. there is a site called motorswap.org some info may exist over there.

Originally Posted by Z34Phoenix

The bottom line is anything is possible. yes Im sure it is possible to get the 08 drive train to work in your 96. yes the parts are cheaper, but the time and fabrication and unknown issues that will pop up will more then end up costing more then just getting a l36 and 4t65e.
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This pretty much sums it up.